


Sunbeams

by RamblingMegome



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: 14 Days of Eremin, Armin getting excited about sea creatures, Collaborative Dishwashing, Day 12 Prompt: Family, Domestic Fluff, Eremin - Freeform, Family, Fluff, M/M, Mikasa's glorious bedhead, Morning Beverages, Pointless conversations, Pointless fluff, Post-War, Shiganshina Trio, canonverse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-02
Updated: 2016-12-02
Packaged: 2018-09-03 17:40:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8723038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RamblingMegome/pseuds/RamblingMegome
Summary: Mikasa stops by to visit her boys some years after the war, and the trio spends a peaceful morning together. This is just super domestic fluff that doesn't go anywhere.Written for the 14 Days of Eremin, day 12 prompt - Family.





	

Armin stepped into the kitchen, taking a deep, contented breath. He loved the mornings. He loved the way the pale golden sunlight streamed in through the windows, the way it made everything feel fresh and warm. He loved the feel of the cool tiles beneath his bare feet. He loved the promise of a new day stretching ahead of him, especially on weekends, when he could look forward to hours of warm arms, soft smiles, tireless conversation or comfortable silences. He loved spending mornings in bed, too, tucked perfectly against a larger body, murmuring against a collarbone or a pair of lips, or sometimes not murmuring. Today wasn't one of those days, not when they had company, but that did nothing to dampen Armin's spirits.

What this morning did need, though, was coffee. Suppressing a yawn, he moved to fill the kettle and prepare his cup. Before he put the coffee grounds away, he stuck his nose in the tin and inhaled the rich scent. This was definitely one of his favorite commodities from outside the Walls. He didn't know how he'd survived this long without it, and at this point, he wasn't sure if he could go back.

The flame whooshed to life beneath the kettle, and Armin's eyes drifted to last night's dishes, still sitting in the sink. He should probably get to those. They were usually pretty good about keeping up with the dishes, but after dinner last night they'd all gone outside to build a bonfire on the sand. They'd spent the rest of the evening chatting and listening to the crackling and spitting of the burning logs, backed by the dull, constant roar of the ocean.

He turned on the sink while he waited for the water to boil. Might as well get at least a little bit done now. He had scrubbed a couple of ceramic plates – their good ones – when he heard someone pad into the room behind him. He smiled when he felt a pair of warm hands settle on either side of his waist.

“'Morning,” Eren greeted, his voice still a little husky with sleep. He leaned over Armin's shoulder to give him a peck on the cheek. “You look so good in my clothes.” He pinched at the loose folds of the T-shirt draped over the smaller man's frame.

“And you look good in none,” Armin teased, letting his eyes skim appreciatively over his husband's shirtless chest. He'd lost the definition that had come with the constant extreme physical exertion during the war, but the tone was still there. “I'm surprised to see you up so early.”

“I missed you,” he replied simply, with a small grin. He moved to stand next to Armin, plucking the towel off the hook on the counter. He pulled one of the plates out of the dish rack beside the sink and took up the task of drying.

Armin thanked him with a warm smile. “I thought maybe we could all go for a walk today,” he suggested as they worked, their shoulders brushing. “We could go see the tide pools we found down at the other end of the beach. Or we could take that trail through the forest we've been working on, or maybe even go into town...”

“The tide pools sound nice,” said a voice from behind them, and the couple started, glancing back in unison to see Mikasa rummaging in a cupboard. “I haven't seen those yet.”

“God, Mikasa, do you have to sneak up on us like that?” Eren huffed, playing up his exasperation.

“Force of habit,” she replied unapologetically, finding what she was looking for. Her arm withdrew from the cupboard with the canister of tea they kept for her. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Nah, we've got it.” Armin smiled fondly back at her, still clad in her nightgown, her hair a disaster of tangles sticking up every which way. “I see you're still leader of the bedhead brigade.”

Eren nudged his elbow as he scrubbed out a pan. “I dunno, Armin, you're a pretty good contender some days,” he said with a smirk.

“At least I usually comb mine when I get up,” he defended.

Mikasa gave a loose shrug, a smile ghosting across her lips. “Hey, I don't need to impress anybody here.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Eren snorted.

“It means I don't care about your opinion,” she teased. The kettle began to whistle from the stove and she moved to turn it off.

“I put some extra water in for your tea,” Armin told her. “You can go ahead and take yours first.”

“Okay. I'll pour yours, too... You use this cup on the counter to measure it, right?”

“Oh, thanks! Yeah, just pour it right into the filter over my mug.”

“Got it.”

“I'm surprised you started on the dishes before even having your coffee,” Eren commented as he stretched up to put the pan back in the overhead cupboard. “That's usually the first thing you do.”

Armin shrugged. “Well, the dishes needed to be done... the sooner they're finished, the sooner we can get on with the day.” He smiled. “It's not every day that the three of us get to be together anymore. I want to make the most of it.”

“Yeah,” Eren agreed warmly.

“Me, too,” Mikasa hummed. “So tell me about those tide pools. You found them recently?”

“Yeah! A few months ago,” Armin said excitedly. “I can't believe we never found them sooner, they're kind of tucked into this little rocky cove where the forest comes down to meet the shore. It's so cool, there are all sorts of crabs and and snails and other little creatures in there. Once there was even this tiny weird squishy leggy thing, I've looked through a whole bunch of books and I'm pretty sure it's called an octopus. I really wanted to hold it but I didn't know what it was at the time, I wasn't sure if it might be dangerous...”

“You're gushing again,” Eren reminded him gently, trying and failing to keep the smile out of his voice.

“It's okay.” Mikasa was suppressing a laugh. “I've missed hearing it.”

Armin finished washing the last of the utensils and passed them off to Eren, drying his hands on the extra towel. “Well, I probably won't be able to stop myself once we're actually there,” he chuckled sheepishly, turning around to face her. Eren just plunked the silverware in the dish rack and moved away. “Hey, you're not gonna finish your job?” He called with mock indignation.

“Eh, they'll dry on their own.” Eren waved him off dismissively. “You go sit down, I'll finish your coffee.”

“You don't have to do that, I'm right here.”

“I want to. Go sit,” he insisted.

Armin sighed and rolled his eyes fondly before complying and joining Mikasa at one of the stools around the island counter. Her forearms rested against the flat surface, her steaming mug cupped between both palms.

“I'm glad things are going well,” she said. “It's good to know that I don't have to worry about you two here.”

“Bet you worry anyway,” Eren teased from behind her.

“We miss you, though.” Armin idly rested his chin in his palm. “Do you think you might be able to make it out here more often this year? Or we could go see you in the city, if that works better.”

“We'll have to see. I'll try to get some more time off. If not, I'll at least make sure to be here for the holidays.”

“We'll make sure to leave the guest room open for you,” he promised.

Eren slipped onto the stool beside him with a mug of coffee in one hand and a glass of orange juice in the other. He took a quick sip of Armin's coffee, then made a face and slid it over to him. “Ugh. I don't know how you can drink that stuff.”

“So don't taste it!” Armin laughed, watching him swig his orange juice instead. He brought the steaming cup to his own lips, blowing on the surface for a moment before taking a careful sip. Despite Eren's dislike of the substance, he always managed to get the cream and sugar just right.

“Is it okay?” He asked that every time.

“It's perfect.” Armin smiled and leaned over to give him a grateful peck on the lips.

“I see you guys are still gross,” Mikasa muttered into her teacup, but her dark eyes were soft. Eren petulantly stuck out his tongue in response.

The trio sat around the counter with their respective morning pick-me-ups, catching up, sharing idle chatter, and making plans for the weekend. The morning warmed around them, easing into day. They carried on in a natural rhythm, unmarred by time or distance and free of the constraints of war. As the sun climbed higher in the sky it found them meandering along the beach, hand-in-hand, a steady line of footprints carved out in the sand behind them.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry it's a bit rushed! I was busy today and didn't have much time to sit and work on this, and I'm a really slow writer. I know this is really pointless but I hope you enjoyed anyway!


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